Photo by Marie-Michèle Bouchard

SOCAN reproduction rights clients to receive music royalties in exclusive CBC agreement

Story by SOCAN | Monday March 21st, 2022

SOCAN has achieved an exclusive reproduction rights settlement with CBC that provides royalties to our clients for copies of their music made and used by the organization’s platforms. SOCAN reproduction rights clients have already benefitted from substantial royalties distributed for past uses, and will see additional royalties distributed on an ongoing basis.

The deal follows the 2020 decision by the Copyright Board of Canada for $1.5-million, further confirming the value of the right, and ensuring music creators and publishers are fairly compensated for reproductions of their work as “post-synchronization copies” made on all digital and broadcast platforms.

A “post-synchronization copy” occurs when a broadcaster uploads original video content containing copyright music to a digital content management system to make copies for internal use.

For example, video containing music is first received by a broadcaster as the original file. It is then copied as part of their broadcasting operations, to facilitate viewing on different digital or broadcast platforms, or for use in different regions.  The rightsholders are legally entitled to fair remuneration for any of these copies made by the broadcasters.

SOCAN is currently the only music rights organization in Canada licensing and distributing royalties on post-synchronization copies. The CBC agreement provides incremental value to reproduction rights holders, as SOCAN continues negotiations with other Canadian broadcasters that require the license.

The CBC agreement covers 2012-18, and extends to 2022. It follows a 2020 decision by the Copyright Board of Canada that awarded SOCAN clients $1.5 million, covering 2008-12.

“The new SOCAN post-synchronization copy agreement further illustrates SOCAN’s commitment to seeking out and demanding fair compensation for music creators,” said Martin Lavallée, Senior Legal Counsel and Head of Reproduction Rights at SOCAN. “After successfully advocating for the long-overlooked music use, SOCAN reproduction rights clients will reap the monetary rewards going forward.”

Recognizing the valuable work done between SOCAN and CBC on post-synchronization copy negotiations, CBC confirmed the same agreement would also be applied to CBC-owned ARTV. resolving an ongoing litigation concerning this channel.

Under the terms of the settlement agreements, financial details cannot be disclosed.

Compensation for this type of music use will evolve over time, as SOCAN continues to advocate for fair compensation for the work of its members. SOCAN has proposed a post-synchronization tariff to the Copyright Board of Canada which has not yet been certified. Without a certified tariff, SOCAN works with broadcasters to create licensing agreements that provide both fair value to the user and fair  compensation to the rightsholders.

SOCAN clients are already benefitting from agreements for television post-synchronization copies with Quebec-based broadcasters, and several English-speaking Bell and Corus channels.

SOCAN Satellite Sessions: Hayley Sales

Story by SOCAN | Tuesday March 22nd, 2022

In order to provide a platform for our members on the rise, we’re pleased to continue the SOCAN Satellite Sessions – an ongoing series of new, unseen member performances broadcast on @SOCANMusic Instagram (and later available across all our social media platforms). This SOCAN Satellite Session features Hayley Sales.

Click on the image to view the session

Click on the image to view the session

In 2021, The Mirror in the U.K. heralded Sales’ work as, “A virtuoso performance; each song radiates with a quality both intimate yet powerful.” Sales has paved her own way; through the velvety hints of Motown and the bold romance of early jazz, her music breathes new life into the vintage sounds of classic pop. She’s carefully crafted her songs to match the unabashed honesty of a born performer. As a teenager, Sales signed with the Universal Music Group and went on to released two self-penned, self-produced records that hit the Top 40 charts in Canada, Japan, and Australia. During this time, she toured internationally with Jason Mraz, INXS, Feist, The Spice Girls, and many more.

In 2016, her career came to a dramatic pause. The label experienced a staff turnover; as a result her third record was shelved, and she was prohibited from buying it back. But the setbacks only made her more determined. In Spring 2021, Sharon Stone and Sales released their first co-write, “Never Before,” the first single from Sales’ double-album Ricochet (2022). The single earned plaudits in Rolling Stone and Billboard magazine, which praised it as “a track that fits squarely into the Great American Songbook lane, thanks to straightforward lyrics and a heart-swooning melody that achieved their goal of telling an elegant, no-fuss love story.” The success of the single led to an opportunity to join Rufus Wainwright on his U.K. tour in October of 2021, and his European tour in the Spring of 2022. Sales plans to release a live record, The London Bridge Sessions, simultaneously. Parallel to her music career, Sales stars alongside Bruce Willis and Michael Rooker in the upcoming Fox feature film, Corrective Measures, premiering in April of 2022.

SOCAN Foundation’s Charlie Wall-Andrews becomes Co-Chair of Canadian Music Week 2022

Story by Howard Druckman | Thursday March 17th, 2022

SOCAN Foundation Executive Director Charlie Wall-Andrews was appointed as Co-Chair of Canadian Music Week for 2022, the 40th annual edition of the event.

“After two years of live music and gatherings being put to a halt, it’s a delight to be part of CMW’s 40th Anniversary,” said Wall-Andrews “It’s my hope to collaborate with the other extraordinary Co-Chairs to support Canadian Music Week in creating diverse and relevant programming that aims to resonate with the community.”

The full list of the 2022 Co-Chairs of Canadian Music Week are (in alphabetical order by first name):

  • Adam Countryman, Agent, Artist Group international
  • Alan Greyeyes, Director, Sakihiwe Festival
  • Charlie Wall-Andrews, Executive Director, SOCAN Foundation
  • Dalton Higgins, Publicist
  • Iain Taylor, President & CEO, Cadence Music Group
  • Jackie Dean, Chief Operating Officer, Music Canada
  • Jake Gold, Manager, The Management Trust
  • Keziah Myers, Executive Director, Advance Music Canada
  • Lisa Logutenkow, Vice President, Canada, The Orchard
  • Margaret McGuffin, Chief Executive Officer, Music Publishers Canada
  • Paolo Palazzo, Work Together Inc.
  • Steve Jordan, former Senior Director, CBC Music

SOCAN congratulates Wall-Andrews and looks forward to her contributions!